Canadian Solar vs Clelo Tech - solar panel manufacturer comparison
Canadian Solar has the broader catalog (292 vs 7 models). Canadian Solar leads on peak efficiency at 24.40%. Clelo Tech leans bifacial (100% of lineup).
Both catalogues are read from the manufacturers' own datasheets. A brand is not scored against the market here, only against the other brand on this page.
The two companies
Canadian Solar Inc. is a global renewable energy company founded in 2001. Headquartered in Kitchener, Ontario, it manufactures solar PV modules and provides battery energy storage solutions. The company also develops utility-scale solar power and battery energy storage projects.
- Founded
- 2001
- Headquarters
- Kitchener, Canada
- Annual capacity
- 51 GW/year
- Employees
- 17,113
- Listed
- NASDAQ: CSIQ
- Tier 1 bankable
- Yes
Jiangsu Clelo Material Technologies Co., Ltd. is a Chinese solar manufacturer and system integrator based in Changshu, Suzhou, specializing in photovoltaic panels, BIPV technology, and complete PV power plant solutions. The company offers products and turnkey systems ranging from small residential installations to...
- Founded
- 2017
- Headquarters
- Changshu, China
Catalogue against catalogue
An average over a catalogue describes the range a manufacturer publishes, not the module you would buy. A brand with two flagship panels and eighty older ones averages worse than one that has retired its back catalogue.
What each of them builds
Clelo Tech skews to higher efficiency: 29% of lineup is 23%+
Clelo Tech offers more 600W+ panels (100% of lineup)
Dominant cell tech: <strong>PERC</strong> (67%)
Dominant cell tech: <strong>HJT</strong> (100%)
The flagships
Written summary
Canadian Solar is a Canada-headquartered manufacturer (NASDAQ-listed, founded in 2001, with much of its manufacturing based in China) that has consistently appeared on BloombergNEF's Tier 1 bankability list, with survey data showing 100 percent of respondents regarding its modules as bankable. Its annual module production capacity runs in the range of roughly 50 to 60 GW, placing it among the largest global suppliers. Clelo Tech, formally Jiangsu Clelo Material Technologies, is a much younger brand founded in 2017 in Jiangsu, China, focused on PV component sales, system integration and technical services; available sources do not confirm a BloombergNEF Tier 1 listing or a specific GW-scale production figure, which is a notable information gap. On institutional footprint alone, Canadian Solar is clearly the more established and better-documented company.
Canadian Solar's product range includes the HiKu6 and TOPHiKu6 residential lines, built on N-type TOPCon cells, with TOPHiKu6 aimed at higher efficiency on space-constrained roofs, alongside bifacial TOPBiHiKu6/7 modules for commercial and utility-scale projects; the company has also moved into HJT cells for premium applications. Clelo Tech states it covers projects from 3 kW residential systems up to 100 MW utility-scale installations and references TOPCon cell technology, but independent efficiency data, field reports, or third-party certification details for its panels were not found in English or Polish-language sources during this research.
For a typical buyer, whether residential or C&I, Canadian Solar is the safer default given its confirmed bankability, long track record, and extensive public technical documentation. Clelo Tech could be worth considering on price alone, but buyers should independently verify its certifications and project references before committing, since the public record on this brand remains thin.
Generated by Claude Sonnet 5 · 2026-10-05
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Comparisons are computed from manufacturer datasheets held in the ComparePV database and may not reflect a brand's complete current lineup. Nothing on this page is paid placement.